The Multibillion- Dollar Marketing Development Funds Available To MSPs
How To Get Vendors To Pay For Your Marketing
Imagine receiving free money to help market and grow your IT business — money you don ’ t need to pay back that can be used to fund events , marketing initiatives , and more . This money exists , and it ’ s available to you right now , no matter the size of your business . This money is available through Marketing Development
Funds ( MDF ).
Wayne Hunter , CEO of AvTek Solutions , Inc ., has been using MDF to grow his MSP for years . Darren Patoni , founder of FullScope IT Inc ., turned $ 2,400 in MDF into $ 1.3 million for his business . And Brandis Kelly , President of the Midwest Region of DigeTekS , LLC , secured just over $ 26,000 of MDF money in only four days .
What Exactly Is MDF , And How Much Is Available ?
MDF is money provided by the manufacturer or brand to help their channel partners create awareness , do marketing , and sell more of their product . Essentially free money , MDF is provided by many vendors MSPs are already partnering with , yet more than half is left unused . In fact , according to Zinfi ’ s worldwide channel survey , 60 % of MDF money is not used on a quarterly basis . Estimates show the amount of unclaimed MDF to be between $ 25 –$ 35 billion .
How Do You Receive MDF ?
Other than MSPs not knowing MDFs exist , one of the prime reasons MDF is left unused is because MSPs are confused about how to get access to it . The following tips will make it easier for you to claim your piece of the MDF pie .
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Just Ask . While many channel companies have money budgeted for their partners , not all have a standardized MDF program . Other vendors have a more official program . Asking will help you know what you need to do . Lisa Niekamp-Urwin , CEO of Tomorrow ’ s Technology Today , has received MDF totaling $ 7,000 in the last few years . Her advice is to just ask and keep asking throughout the year .
“ Always ask ,” Niekamp-Urwin said . “ And don ’ t be scared . I thought I ’ m just a little fish in the pond , but the money is there . I ’ ve found that the vendors I ’ m in constant contact with are the best place to start because they allowed me to concentrate on where my efforts pay off the quickest . If you have a great relationship with a vendor , they are more likely to give you funds because they know the efforts you ’ re putting in .”
Have A Plan . Creating a plan before you ask is critical to successfully securing MDF . “ What ’ s the plan before , and what ’ s the plan afterward ?” Hunter said . “ Channel partners also want to see that you have skin in the game .”
Hunter approaches multiple vendors for MDF for a single event . “ I have three different vendors that gave me MDF for a single plan because they complement each other ,” he said . “ We are doing a webinar series right now . Funding helps offset the cost of the platform and fund mailers and giveaways . I didn ’ t realize it was going to be as big of a hit , but when we put the plan together and asked vendors to join in , I created a backlog of people signed up . I ’ m booked out for months for that plan because they see it ’ s a different approach and that we ’ re getting business from it . Plus , I ’ m highlighting them and educating the market .”
Follow Through . While researching MDF for the presentation he ’ s doing during the 10-city Next Generation MSP Tour ( NextGenMSPTour . com ), Fred Sagester spoke with MSPs